Canadian appears in Thai court

A native of British Columbia, Canada appeared in a Thai court yesterday to face charges of pedophilia, Canadian news agency CTV reports. If convicted, the alleged pedophile could face up to 35 years in prison. 33-year old Christopher Neil appeared in shackles in front of a Bangkok judge on Monday, but the court case was adjourned until October.

Neil had taught English for many years in Asia and was arrested last October as the international law enforcement agency Interpol descrambled an online photo of what is alleged to show Neil in lewd acts with a nine year old Thai boy. Neil heard the charges leveled against him for the first time in the courtroom, which included taking a child without parental consent and subsequently holding the child against his will. There are also videos of what investigators purport are illegal cast involving Neil and other children.

The boy’s father, who will seek $10,000 in damages says, "I want him jailed. The money is not a big deal."

Neil will have to wait until the fall for his day in court, and his family says they are having trouble raising funds for a private lawyer to defend him.